Badger from the "Fauna galega" series. Carlos Silvar. Sargadelos, Spain. After 1981.

I fell in love with this badger as soon as I saw it. Well, maybe it's because I did like Mr. Badger at "The wind in the willows" :)

But from a designer's point of view I love the simple shape, the subtle changes of volume (you must hold it in your hands to appreciate it, no way i could show that in a picture)... and the way the colour patches are made. They remind me a lot of the work of the American illustrator Josh Brill (only Sargadelos style's comes from way further in time).

I cannot tell who designed it or when was it first produced. I think these animal figurines were first released in the 90s, but I could be wrong.

Sargadelos is a historic porcelain and ceramics factory founded in Galicia (North West of Spain) in 1806, but it was re-launched as a modern factory in the 1960s by the recently deceased Spanish designer Isaac Díaz Pardo. The factory has collaborated since them with artists (some of them great ones) and has a team of excellent designers.

UPDAT 27/05/2023
Not long ago I found out all the Sargadelos animal figurines were designed by Carlos Silvar. He was an illustrator and joined the company soon after leaving the Art School in Madrid to develope this series. AFter that he remained in the company for 30 years.

Here's a link to an interview to Carlos Silvar. It is in Galician language but google translate may be a help to understand it.
https://areal.gal/2020/07/carlos-r-silvar-foi-un-orgullo.html